Pakistan seeks to build on bonds with China

By Farhan Bokhari

With the unveiling of Islamabad's first indigenously assembled JF-17 aircraft, Pakistan and China are keen to demonstrate their bonds. Farhan Bokhari reports

Framed under a larger-than-life portrait of the first JF-17 Chinese- built fighter aircraft painted with Chinese and Pakistani flags, which flew into Pakistan last year, the unveiling of Islamabad's first indigenously assembled fighter aircraft in the same series on 23 November carried more than just symbolic value.

With both of its wings painted green - the colour of Pakistan's flag - and a yellow thunderbolt painted on each of its wings (a reminder of the JF-17's other title: 'Thunder') the roll-out from the Pakistan Air Force (PAF)-run Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) marked a vital moment for Pakistan and China to highlight their carefully crafted strategic partnership.

Over the past year China has handed over eight JF-17s to the PAF, whose officials claim the PAF will be equipped with as many as 250 JF-17 fighters by the end of the next decade. Pakistan plans to build nine to 11 aircraft by June 2010, which, combined with the Chinese aircraft already delivered, will form the PAF's first squadron of JF-17s.

While Pakistan aims to seek military hardware globally, notably of US origin, for Western observers its policy-makers are showing signs of an increasingly pro-China tilt even in seeking sophisticated weapons. This is in apparent recognition of Beijing's improving capacity to build advanced weapons.

Pakistan and China are also keen to publicly demonstrate their proximity in ways seldom seen before. "[Our] friendship [with Pakistan] is higher than the Himalayas, deeper than the Arabian Sea and sweeter than honey," said Luo Zhaohui, the Chinese ambassador to Islamabad ahead of the roll-out, prompting applause from the audience.

The gathering at the PAF-run Pakistan Aeronautical complex (PAC) at Kamra, just north of Islamabad, marked the first step towards the PAF's plans to build at least 42 fighters - a stage that will see the PAC produce 58 per cent of the JF-17's parts, according to Pakistani officials.

Yusuf Raza Gilani, Pakistan's prime minister, used the event to commend China for always standing by Pakistan "in our hour of need", while Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman, the PAF's chief of staff, reminded the audience of the "time-tested" character of Pakistan's relations with China.

The launch of the JF-17 has taken almost 20 years since Pakistan and China first decided to jointly produce a fighter aircraft, which in the words of Pakistan's ACM Suleman, was meant to be "a low-cost, high-performance aircraft".

For Islamabad and Beijing, the defence relationship dates back to 1966 when Pakistan approached China for the first time to purchase the F-6 aircraft - the Chinese version of the Soviet MiG-19 - just a year after Islamabad was slapped with US sanctions following its war with India in 1965.

Since then, while Pakistan was sanctioned by Washington in 1990 over concerns that Islamabad was working to produce nuclear weapons, China has never delayed or withheld its promised supply of weapons. This relationship has earned Beijing a much stronger friendship with parts of Pakistan's ruling establishment than the US, which resumed its military and economic support to Islamabad after the New York terrorist attacks of September 2001.

"Pakistan trusts the Chinese much more than others. China has remained a close friend, an ally and, above all, an important emerging global power," retired Pakistan Army lieutenant general Talat Masood told Jane's.

Early in November Pakistani and Western officials confirmed that Pakistan and China had reached an understanding for Beijing to sell at least 36 of its J-10s to Islamabad. PAF officials consider the J-10 to be the most advanced among China's fighter aircraft.

Additionally, Beijing is due to supply four of its airborne early-warnings systems to the PAF within the next 12 to 18 months. In the past, China has also supplied the PAF with the K-8 trainer aircraft. Other major deals have included the go-ahead for China's sale of four F22P frigates to the Pakistan Navy and its support in the development of the Pakistan Army's Al-Khalid main battle tank.

After the ceremony on 23 November, a senior Pakistani government told Jane's that Pakistan's navy was in informal negotiations with China for the purchase of another three to four frigates, that will be larger than the F22Ps. However, he declined to give further details.

While the relationship has generally been friendly, China is known to have expressed its concerns to Pakistan from the late 1990s to the early part of this decade over Pakistani Muslim separatists teaming up with Muslim separatists from China's northern Xinjiang region.

However, Pakistani officials say China's concerns have largely been addressed after Islamabad provided assurances in 2003 that it would actively work to block any attempt by its own militants to support Chinese Muslim separatists, including the provision of arms and training.

More broadly, progress on the JF-17 and the J-10 aircraft as well as other weapon systems suggests a three-part theme clearly emerging in Sino-Pakistan relations.

First, Islamabad is continuing to seek Western arms, notably US arms, but is also eager to deepen its relations with China and work jointly on more sophisticated systems than before. This strategy appears to be driven primarily by the view that relations with partners such as the US, no matter how close on the surface, will always be prone to policy disagreements that could at least temporarily, if not permanently, halt the flow of weapons. In contrast China, with its long history of co-operating with Pakistan, will remain a reliable supplier.

Second, China's advancement as a global power and its long-term relationship with Pakistan, in the eyes of Islamabad, creates the opportunity for the country to benefit from China's future. Pakistan's policy planners see arms development co-operation leading to a relationship where Islamabad is likely to benefit from export orders, especially for Sino-Pakistani weapons. Already, Pakistani officials have pointed towards the probable price of a fighter aircraft like the JF-17 being significantly lower than an aircraft in a similar category produced by a Western manufacturer.

Finally, Pakistan's push to militarily confront Taliban militants with attacks in the northern Swat valley and the south Waziristan region near the Afghan border potentially eases some of Beijing's own concerns over Islamabad's past tolerance of Islamic hardliners, allaying fears in Beijing of parts of Islamabad's ruling establishment remaining soft on hardcore militants.

Faced with numerous obstacles, U.S. trainers try to get Afghan air force off

By Geoff Ziezulewicz

Rocket-propelled grenades began whizzing by the rickety, Soviet-era M-17 chopper. Flying 50 feet above a canyon floor in Kandahar province, the Afghan pilot suddenly began to climb, lurching dangerously close to another Mi-17. Sitting in the co-pilot seat, U.S. Air Force Capt. Tyler Rennell abruptly seized control of the chopper and narrowly averted a mid-air collision.

Then the Afghan pilot started pouting, Rennell recalled."He gets so upset about me taking the controls that he takes his helmet off," Rennell said. "If you [quit mid-mission like this] in the U.S., you’re done."Close calls and culture clashes in the skies over Afghanistan have become a regular occurrence for U.S. helicopter pilots training the Afghan National Army Air Corps at Kandahar Air Field."There’s a very large inherent risk we accept," Rennell said. "I’m on my second hand of [counting] times I’ve almost died."

Crashes aren’t the only peril facing U.S. airmen training the Afghan air corps.There are helicopters with questionable maintenance histories; older pilots who feel young American jocks have nothing to teach them; a shortage of dependable spare parts; and, perhaps most frightening, illiterate maintenance mechanics who can’t read a checklist or manual.The chopper Rennell took control of in that canyon sustained some shrapnel damage in the attack. The damage was fixed — to Afghan standards.

"They took a Fanta can and fixed the main rotor blade and that was fine," Rennell said. "We said, ‘OK.’"The members of the air corps are "the cream of the cream of the crop" when it comes to the Afghan army, Rennell said. Still, an "inshallah" (God willing) mind-set dominates the ranks, a cultural view that clashes with the strict protocols required for operating highly technical aircraft.

Lt. Col. Percy Dunagin commands the 738th Air Expeditionary Advisory Group, the main body of airmen tasked with bringing the Kandahar Air Wing up to snuff."You have a pool of people who are not good at reading or writing," Dunagin said of the maintenance workers. "They go by pictures, they do it from memory or other notes they have."Most pilots are older and hadn’t flown for a decade before joining the air corps, reconstituted in 2005, Rennell said.

The "old heads" flew for the Taliban, the Northern Alliance or various warlords before the 2001 U.S. invasion. Dunagin said many were taught how to fly the Mi-17 by the Soviets.Any American servicemember working with Afghans can tell you that concepts get lost in translation. Shouting over the din of the helicopter cockpit, such misunderstandings take on even greater consequence, Rennell said.Of the 15 American maintenance instructors at Kandahar, just one is a helicopter mechanic by trade, according to Maj. Darren Brumfield, the 738th’s maintenance team leader.

About half of the U.S. maintainers attend a monthlong Mi-17 course before deploying, he said, and in many ways, the Americans are learning about the Mi-17 alongside their Afghan counterparts.Even though they are mainly jet guys, the maintenance troops at Kandahar have been doing maintenance for a long time, Brumfield said, and that helps them keep an eye out for when the Afghans are committing glaring maintenance mistakes.

"There are safety lines they don’t need to cross and we’ll stop them," he said.

As Rennell walked around the new and largely empty Afghan air corps hangar this week, he said the air corps needs a few years to develop. But there’s also a war on."What we’re doing with them is trying to build the airplane while flying it — not an easy task," Air Force Brig. Gen. Michael Boera, commander of the Combined Airpower Transition Force, said in an e-mail. With a $450 million annual budget, the command has overseen Afghan air training since 2007.

The Afghan air corps has 45 aircraft and 2,800 personnel between wings in Kabul and Kandahar and detachments at Herat and Mazar-e-Sharif, with plans to grow the force to about 150 aircraft and 8,000 airmen, according to Boera.The force recently received its first modern western aircraft with the delivery of a C-27A Spartan for airlift and ground forces support, Boera said.

Despite the array of other issues facing Afghanistan and its armed forces, Dunagin said Afghan air power must be built now because helicopter support is needed for Afghan ground troops, and the basic understanding Afghan pilots have will only erode without practice, possibly requiring U.S. trainers to some day start training pilots from scratch. "The longer we wait," he said, "the worse things get."

Stripes

Fight over the results of Pokhran N-tests continues

Dr Anil Kakodkar

How credible is India’s thermo-nuclear deterrent? That is the key issue Karan Thapar discussed in the CNN-IBN’s "Devil’s Advocate" programme, broadcast on Sunday, with the former Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, Dr Anil Kakodkar. He speaks comprehensively, authoritatively and powerfully to clear all the doubts raised by Dr Santhanam and three other leading scientists about the credibility and success of India’s thermo-nuclear tests of 1998. Here are excerpts from the interview:

Question: Dr Kakodkar, four leading scientists —- Dr Santhanam, Dr Iyengar, Dr Sethna and Dr Prasad —- have raised serious doubts about India’s thermo-nuclear tests of 1998. Dr Santhanam says, "we have hard evidence on a purely factual basis that not only was the yield of the thermo-nuclear device far below the design prediction, but that it actually failed". Do you have a problem on your hands?

Answer: No, I think this is a totally erroneous conclusion. The yield of thermo-nuclear tests was verified, not by one method but several redundant methods based on different principles, done by different groups. These have been reviewed in detail and, in fact, I had described the tests in 1998 as perfect and I stand by that.

Q: I am glad that you began by talking about the yield because both Dr Santhanam and Dr Iyenger have questioned the yield of the thermo-nuclear tests. Dr Santhanam says that the DRDO seismic instruments measured the yield as something between 20-25 kilotonnes which is hugely different from the claim put out by the Atomic Energy Commission that it was 45 kilotonnes. How confident are you of the 45 kilotonne yield?

A: Well, let me first of all say that that the DAE and the DRDO both work together as a team. The DRDO did deploy some instruments for measurements but the fact is that the seismic instruments did not work. I myself had reviewed all the results immediately after the tests and we concluded that the instruments did not work.

Q: Dr Santhanam says that the Bhabha Atomic Energy Centre accepted the DRDO’s instruments and their estimation for the yield of their fission bomb but not for the fusion or the thermo-nuclear. He says how can it be that the instruments worked in one case and not the other.

A: Well that’s not true because the instrument measure the ground motion at the place where the instrument is located. We had to separate out the information which was coming out from the thermo-nuclear and which was coming from the fission test. So the point that I am making is that the seismic instruments did not work. So there is no question of the yield of the fission test being right and the thermo-nuclear test being wrong because no conclusion can be drawn from those instruments either way.

Q: But do you have proof that the yield of the thermo-nuclear test was 45 kilotonnes?

A: Yes. In fact, we have. Within limits of what can be said and I must make it clear here that no country has given so much scientific details on their tests as we have given and this we have published with the maximum clarity which could be done.

Q: The problem is that even in 1998, foreign monitors questioned the yield of the thermo-nuclear tests. At that time, Indian doubts were only expressed in private. Now, Indian doubts have burst out into the open and they are being heard in public. Does it not worry you that these doubts continue —- now both abroad and at home —- and that they have continued for 11 years?

A: Well, it’s unfortunate but it doesn’t worry me because facts are facts and there is no question of getting worried about this. The point is that the measurements which have been done, they have been done — as I mentioned earlier — by different groups. People who carry out the measurements on seismic instruments are a different group. People who carry out the measurements on radiochemical instruments are a different group. There are other methods that you can use — for example, the simulation of ground motion. That’s another group. And all these groups have come to their own conclusions, which match with each other.

Q: And all these five or six different ways of measuring the yield have come to the conclusion that the yield was 45 kilotonnes for the thermo-nuclear device?

A: That’s right.

Q: So in your mind there is no doubt about it whatsoever?

A: Absolutely not.

Q: Now, Dr Santhanam, in addition to disputing the yield has other reasons to believe that the thermo-nuclear device failed. He says that given that the fission device, which produced a yield of around 25 kilotonnes, created a crater of 25 meters in diameter, then if the fusion bomb had been successful and produced a yield of 45 kilotonnes it should have created a crater of around 70 meters in diameter. He says that that didn’t happen and there was, in fact, no crater at all.

A: That’s a layman way of looking at it. The fact of the matter is the fission device yield was 15 kilotonnes, not 25 kilotonnes.

Q: So he’s wrong in saying that it was 25 kilotonnes?

A: That’s right and secondly although the two devices were about 1.5 kilometers apart, the geology within that distance changed quite a bit, partly because of the layers that exist and their slopes but more importantly because their depths have been different. So the placement of the device of the fission kind is in one kind of medium and the placement of the device of the thermo-nuclear kind is in another medium.

Q: So, in fact, what you are saying is that Dr Santhanam is making two mistakes and possibly making them deliberately. First of all, he’s exaggerating the yield of the fission device and secondly he is completely ignoring the fact that the geology of the placement of the fusion was very different.

A: That’s right.

Q: And both of those have led him to an erroneous conclusion?

A: Yes. And, in fact, we have gone through detailed simulation. For example, in simulation you can locate the thermo-nuclear device where the fission device was placed and you can locate the fission device where the thermo-nuclear device was placed. And you get a much bigger crater now because the yield is higher.

Q: This is a very important point that you are making.

A: Yes. And the fission device, which is now placed in the thermo-nuclear position, produces much less ground displacement.

Q: So if in simulation you place the thermo-nuclear device where the fission device was placed, you would get a much bigger crater —- much closer to the 70 metres in diameter that Dr Santhanam would like to see?

A: Well, I don’t remember how much it was but this is actually true. This has been verified by calculations.

Q: Dr Santhanam has yet one more reason for believing that the thermo-nuclear device failed. He says if it had succeeded, both the shaft and the a-frame would have been totally destroyed. Instead, writing in The Hindu, he says, the shaft "remained totally undamaged" and as for the a-frame, he says, it "remained completely intact".

A: Well, I think you must understand the phenomena of ground motion when a nuclear test takes place. Depending on the depth of burial and of course the medium in which it is buried, you could get several manifestations on the surface. You could get a crater and there are different kinds of craters that one could see. You can just get a mound —- the ground rises and remains there. And on the other extreme it can vent out. So in case of the thermo-nuclear device, the placement was in hard rock —- granite —- and with the depth and the yield for 45 kilotonnes, one expects only a mound to rise, which is what happened.

Q: And not a crater?

A: And not a crater.

Q: Clearly you are dismissive of Dr Santhanam’s doubts. Now let me quote to you what one of your predecessors —- former Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, Dr P K Iyenger —- said in a statement he issued on September 24, 2009. He says: "The recent revelations by Dr Santhanam are the clincher. He was one of the four leaders associated with Pokhran II, the team leader from the DRDO side, and he must certainly have known many of the details, particularly with regard to the seismic measurements. If he says that the yield was much lower than projected, that there was virtually no crater formed, then there is considerable justification for reasonable doubt regarding the credibility of the thermo-nuclear test." Does it worry you that your predecessors seem to disagree with you but agree with Dr Santhanam?

A: Well, first of all I respect everybody. I respect Dr Iyenger, I respect Dr Santhanam, but the fact is that Dr Iyenger was nowhere involved in the 1998 tests. He was, of course, a key figure in the 1974 tests. Also, the fact is that before the 1998 tests, all work was done under cover —- we were not in the open —- and we required a lot of logistical support and that all was being provided by the DRDO. But things were still being done on a need-to-know basis. So, to assume that Dr Santhanam knew everything is not true.

Q: You are making two important points. One you are saying that the DRDO and Dr Santhanam did not know everything —- the fact that he was the DRDO team leader does not mean that he knew everything that was happening.

A: He knew everything within his realm of responsibility.

Q: You are also saying that Dr Iyenger isn’t fully in the picture and, therefore, his opinion is not necessarily valid.

A: He is not in the picture as far as the 1998 tests are concerned.

Q: So, he doesn’t really know about the 1998 tests.

A: Well, he knows only as much as has been published and nothing more.

Q: Let’s pursue the credibility and the doubts surrounding India’s thermo-nuclear deterrent in a somewhat different way. Dr Santhanam says that these doubts were formally raised by the DRDO with the tovernment as far back as 1998 itself. And in a meeting arranged by the then National Security Advisor Brajesh Mishra, they were brushed aside in a manner which Dr Santhanam compares to a sort of frivolous voice vote.

A: Immediately after the tests, we carried out a review with both teams present —- BARC team as well as the DRDO team. We looked at the measurements done by the BARC team and we looked at the measurements done by the DRDO team and I told you the conclusions and on the basis of that review it was clear what instruments we could go by and what conclusions we could draw. Now, the question is that if the instruments didn’t work, where is the question of going by any assertions, which are based on (that). What is the basis of any assertions?

Q: In an article that Dr Santhanam has written recently (on November 15, 2009) for The Tribune, he says: The Department of Atomic Energy —- the department to which you were ex-officio secretary —- has, in fact, been hiding facts from successive Indian governments, from Parliament and from Indian people. How do you respond to that accusation?

A: Well, as I said earlier, we are perhaps unique in giving out the maximum information and that too very promptly —- immediately after the tests.

Q: There is no hiding?

A: There is no hiding.

Q: Let me put to you two or three critical issues. Given the fact that although you have concluded several reviews —- including one recently after the doubts were raised —- the doubts continue. And given that these are doubts about India’s one and only thermo-nuclear test, do we need more tests?

A: Well, I would say no because the important point to note is that the thermo-nuclear test, the fission test and the sub-kilotonne test all worked as designed.

Q: You are saying that India doesn’t need more thermo-nuclear tests but the truth is that all the established thermo-nuclear powers needed more than one test. Can India be the exception?

A: Well, if you go by "Dil Maange More", that’s another story.

Q: I want to pick up on that last point that you have just made. Given that doubts continue and given that there are going to be no further tests and you are not saying that there is any need for further tests, can you say India has a credible thermo-nuclear bomb?

A: Of course.

Q: We have a credible thermo-nuclear bomb?

A: Why are you using singular? Make that plural.

www.tribuneindia.com

Six accused in Mumbai case seek acquittal

RAWALPINDI: Six of the seven men accused of involvement in planning last year’s Mumbai attacks have sought acquittal on the ground that they could not be tried for offences committed in India.

In three applications filed on Saturday seeking acquittal, the six contended that the evidence against them was inadmissible in court.

Malik Mohammad Akram Awan, special judge of the Anti-Terrorism Court-I, directed the prosecution to submit their arguments on Dec 19 when the court would take up the three petitions.

Ammad Amin Sadiq, Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, Mazhar Iqbal, Abdul Majid, Shahid Jameel Riaz and Mohammad Yunus Anjum moved two applications under Section 265-K of the Criminal Procedure Code (power of court to acquit an accused at any stage), saying that they could not be tried for offences committed in India.

Khwaja Sultan Ahmed, who represents the accused, maintained that the prosecution had relied on Section 4 of the Pakistan Penal Code (extension of the code on extra-territorial offences) and the law could only be referred to offences under PPC and not acts of terrorism.

The accused said that they had been charged with criminal conspiracy for carrying out the Nov 26, 2008, attacks in Mumbai, but without mentioning the motive or the place where they had hatched the conspiracy.

They said according to law, the charge-sheet should have been specific about the motive.

According to them, the trial judge had ‘not applied his independent mind while charging them’ because their charge-sheet was the same that they had objected to earlier.

The second petition assailed the court’s decision to conduct a separate trial of Ajmal Kasab, who is being tried in India. They said according to Pakistani laws, separate trials of the accused could not be held.

They also urged the court to direct the prosecution to give legal reasons for not producing Kasab in court.

Another application challenged the admissibility of Kasab’s confessional statement in a Pakistani court. It said that the statement handed over to the accused was ‘not duly verified’.

They said that their lawyers could not cross-examine Ajmal Kasab or the magistrate who had recorded his confessional statement in India ‘as necessary part of the trial’.

Under the circumstances, they argued, Ajmal Kasab’s statement ‘cannot be considered legal’.

Pakistan may face new jihad, this time on Internet

ISLAMABAD: The detention in Pakistan of Americans seeking to contact militants and join holy war through the Internet suggests the country may need more than security crackdowns to contain threats from an insurgency.

The five men, students in their 20s from northern Virginia, were detained this week in the city of Sargodha in Punjab province, 190 km (120 miles) southeast of Islamabad, security officials said.

The suspects were being investigated for possible links to a Pakistan-based group suspected of carrying out high-profile attacks and with links to the Taliban and al Qaeda. Laptops, cellphones and maps of Pakistani cities were seized from them.

'It's a very difficult job to dismantle such networks which operate through the Internet. Their mode of communication was the Internet and email. All five and their contacts were using the same password and just putting their messages in draft and weren't sending them,' said a Pakistani security official.

'It's very difficult to detect them. If the FBI could not detect these types of messages, how can we? It's not an easy job.'

The possibility of having to track down militant networks on the Internet could not have come at a worse time for Pakistan. It is already struggling against militants who seem to carry out bombings at will, killing hundreds since October and raising questions over the stability of the nuclear-armed country.

Islamabad also faces mounting pressure from Washington to root out militants that cross the border to attack US-led troops in Afghanistan.

Radicalisation starts thousands of miles away from the strategic region. Some security officials say the Americans had intended to go fight in Afghanistan.

Two were of Pakistani origin. Officials said one of the Americans was of Egyptian origin, one of Yemeni origin and another of Eritrean origin, illustrating how the Internet can spread militant networks across continents, undetected.

If young men are leaning towards leaving behind the West to seek jihad, the Internet offers a variety of videos, made by some of the world's deadliest militant groups, to help them decide.

Cost-free indoctrination by the Taliban and al Qaeda is readily available on sites such as You Tube, which one official said was used by the five Americans to try and contact militants.

Videos romanticise what could be a violent future.

Militants jump through fire rings, climb obstacles and open fire with assault rifles to train for 'martyrdom'.

Video clips often lead to images of aircraft crashing into the World Trade Center. Militants will smile in the face of death, viewers are told.

NEW RECRUITMENT STRATEGY

The suspects were being investigated for links with the banned Jaish-e-Mohammad group. Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad has links with al Qaeda and the Taliban.

It was suspected of involvement in attacks including the murder of US journalist Daniel Pearl in 2002 and an assassination attempt on former president Pervez Musharraf.

Ahmed Rashid, author of a book on Pakistan called 'Descent Into Chaos' and an expert on the Taliban, said the case of the Americans pointed to a 'huge new development as far as terrorism is concerned'.

'Obviously al Qaeda, these groups, have determined that it's too dangerous for American citizens to attack America. They will be discovered too soon. So it's much easier that they come out here and use their bodies here,' he told Reuters.

'This is a new recruitment strategy. A few years ago these people would have been used as sleeper cells in the United States, or to lay low or to carry out terrorist attacks in the United States. They are not being used for that anymore.'

Pakistani television stations showed photographs of the detained Americans. There were no hints of the fiery emotions which have driven others to blow themselves up at Pakistan's markets or police stations, and recently, near the country's strategic military headquarters, ringing alarm bells.

Pervez Hoodhbhoy, a Pakistani nuclear physics professor and writer on social and political issues, has seen the fury that drives men to take up violent causes during his meetings with members of the Pakistani community in the United States.

He says clamping down on militant networks on the Internet could be impossible for any government. But Hoodhbhoy emphasised that Pakistan's policy of trying to modernise religious schools, some of which are seen as breeding grounds for extremism, may make the job more difficult.

'The government put these computers and Internet into the madrasas as part of its reform package. The hope was that this would modernise the madrasas,' said Hoodhbhoy, who has been called a traitor by militants on the Internet and received death threats.

'In fact, it has given them means of networking with jihadist groups across the world.'

Lockheed unveils the PAF’s first F-16D Block 52 aircraft

Lockheed Martin unveiled the first of 18 new F-16s being produced for Pakistan in ceremonies today at its Fort Worth, Texas, facility.

Officials including the Chiefs of Staff of the U.S. and Pakistan Air Forces were on hand to witness the event.

Air Chief Marshal Rao Quamar Suleman, Chief of the Air Staff, Pakistan Air Force (PAF), accepted the first F-16 Block 52 aircraft on behalf of his nation. Also present were Husain Haqqani, Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States, and other senior officials.

The U.S. government was represented by Rep. Kay Granger, Texas 12th District, and Gen. Norton Schwartz, Chief of Staff of the Air Force.

“Peace Drive is the flagship of modernization for Pakistan’s Air Force. It is the latest configuration of the best 4th generation multirole fighter available in the world today,” said John Larson, vice president of F-16 programs for Lockheed Martin.

The aircraft order is designated as “Peace Drive I,” continuing a long tradition of naming F-16 international sales programs with the word Peace. The program raises the total number of F-16s ordered by Pakistan to 54. The Pakistan Air Force received its first F-16, in the Block 15 F-16A/B configuration, in 1982. Pakistan has been operating Lockheed Martin aircraft since 1963, when it received C-130B airlifters.

The Peace Drive I order is for 12 F-16Cs and six F-16Ds, all powered by the Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-229 engine. The first aircraft – a two-seat F-16D model – will be delivered to the U.S. government (as agent for Pakistan in the Foreign Military Sales process) in December, with the remainder following in 2010.

The F-16 is the choice of 25 nations. More than 4,400 aircraft have been delivered worldwide from assembly lines in five countries. The F-16 program has been characterized by unprecedented international cooperation among governments, air forces and aerospace industries. Major upgrades to all F-16 versions are being incorporated to keep the fleet modern and fully supportable over the aircraft’s long service life.

Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin is a global security company that employs about 140,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The corporation reported 2008 sales of $42.7 billion.

F-16 is a registered trademark of Lockheed Martin Corp.

Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company Press Release

Joint Light Tactical Vehicles get ready for 2010 Testing

By the end of 2009 the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle Program Office expects the three contractors to provide technology development and demonstration vehicles and associated equipment for performance and reliability testing by U.S. army, Marines and Special Operations Command users. According to Kevin Fahey, Army program executive officer, the current evaluation phase is designed to assess the maturity and integrability of the different technologies submitted by the three industry teams selected for the demonstration. Following the 27 month program a production decision is expected by the end of 2014, with full-rate fielding to begin in 2016.

The program has received a lot of international attention, too. Australia and India both signed agreements to provide development support and share the associated costs, and other countries have expressed interest in participating as well. Israel, Canada and the U.K. are also following the program closely.

Earlier in November 09 the models designed by General Tactical Vehicles (GTV), the joint venture between GDLS/AM General has successfully completed the Critical Design Review (CDR). GTV was the first JLTV contractor to meet this milestone, enabling them to proceed to the production and testing of the vehicles and trailers scheduled for delivery for the U.S. government by spring of 2010. Second to pass CDR was the BAE Systems/Navistar team completed this milestone. The BAE Systems-Navistar team has developed two JLTV prototypes for internal testing that have provided valuable information being used in the CDR. Their JLTV design also incorporates lessons learned from the deployment of MaxxPro and RG33 type Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles, being produced by the two partners. Next, in line is the Lockheed Martin, expected to complete the process soon.

JLTV will arrive in time to modernize the U.S. military tactical vehicle inventory, which is riding today on the 40 years old HMMWV designs back in the 1970s. The military’s fleet of Humvees, estimated at about 160,000, was developed in the 1970s and delivered in the early 1980s. It was the first example of the 'family of vehicles' approach, replacing a number of light and medium vehicles with a common platform designed with high mobility, effective payload capacity and modularity, providing a common platform for utility, liaison, patrol, and mission-specific roles. Although it had the capability to apply light armor for combat missions it was never designed to survive as a direct combat vehicle.

When these vehicles proved vulnerable to roadside bombs in Iraq and, increasingly, in Afghanistan, the military responded by applying armor plating, bulletproof windows, protected weapon stations and electronic defensive equipment that overloaded the vehicle's engine and electrical supply. This evolution brought the typical Humvee from the original designed maximum gross vehicle weight (GVW) of about 12,000 pounds, closer to 18,000 pounds. The vehicle is way overweight, underpowered, lacking the mobility is was designed to provide and does not have the payload to do its missions.

On the other end of the weight scale is the MRAP behemoth, which was bought off the shelf, rapidly fielded and being improved and modified to meet the shortcomings and limitations that evolve through operational use. Currently being deployed to Afghanistan are the lighter weight variants of the MRAP, known as M-ATV. While being more adaptable to the rough terrain, these truck based vehicles are much heavier and limited in their growth capacity, compared to the planned JLTV.

In contrast to the rapid evolution of the Off-The-Shelf MRAP that focused primarily on protection, and left the other aspects for future improvements, the military is taking the time to design its next generation vehicle to meet the user's current and future expectations in operational use, while focusing on reliability and maintainability and commonality.

Fahey emphasized the benefit of designing the next-generation light tactical vehicles from the ground up for their specific use rather than simply being adapted to meet operational requirements. The biggest challenge in a joint program, Fahey said, is agreeing to a common set of requirements. The Marine Corps puts the highest emphasis on making the vehicles lightweight to meet its mobility requirements. The Army tends to focus more on troop protection.

Defense-Update

Rafael Unveils new long range (NLOS) Spike Missile

Photo above: A close-up view of the NLOS Spike launch system, integrating the Toplite stabilized EO sight for independent target acquisition. For maximum range engagement the NLOS Spike relies on remote target acquisition. Photo: Rafael

Israel's Rafael Advanced Defense Systems has unveiled a, beyond-line-of-sight version of the Spike fiber-optical guided missile capable of attacking pinpoint targets at ranges of up to 15.5 miles (25 km). The new missile weighing 155 lbs (70 kg) is already operational with the customer believed to be the Israel Defense Forces. It can be launched from land vehicles, airborne platforms or naval surface vessels.

The new version, designated Spike NLOS can carry the entire family of warheads designed for the Spike, including the shaped-charge anti-tank, and penetration blast fragmentation (PBR), enabling the missile to effectively strike targets beyond line of sight. In addition to offering selective targeting, by the use of its integral EO guidance camera, Spike NLOS can also receive target data from remote target acquisition systems, such as airborne UAVs, or remotely operated via networked command and control systems.

The Spike family of missiles is considered as the most mature and versatile multi-platform electro-optical precision attack missile in the market. Spike missiles are currently operating in several countries, including Israel, several Asian and Latin American countries, as well as a number of NATO countries, including Spain, Poland, Italy, Romania, Finland, and Czech Republic. Spike missiles were also selected to equip the German Puma Infantry Fighting Vehicles.

The missile integrates a dual EO seeker, effectively engaging targets in day and night, utilizing 'fire and forget' or 'fire and update' operating modes, enabling the operator to home in precisely on a pinpoint target as the missile closes-in on the terminal phase of its flight, just prior to the attack, thus maximizing the missile's effect while minimizing collateral damage, even under highly dynamic battle conditions. The communications between the missile and operator is conducted over an optical fiber, enabling effective, broadband, secure two-way communications.

Defense-Update

Arakonam naval air station to be vital hub for Indian Navy

Arakkonam naval air station, 70 km west of Chennai, is all set to be a hub for modern maritime reconnaissance with the Indian Navy planning to station eight long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft Boeing P8I to be bought from the US aircraft manufacturer

"The aircraft will be capable of long-range maritime patrol, anti-submarine warfare, anti surface warfare, intelligence gathering and search and rescue missions. It will be fitted with the best available sensors in the market," said assistant chief of naval staff (Air) rear admiral S M Vadgaokar, at the passing out of helicopter pilots from Helicopter Training School at INS Rajali in Arakonam on Saturday.

India signed a $2.1 billion contract with Boeing for acquiring these aircraft in January 2009. They will replace the eight Russian Tupolev-142M turboprops. "Eight aircraft are included in the contract. But, we have an option to buy four more which may be bought from another manufacturer. Delivery of the aircraft will start by end of 2012. The last aircraft will come in 2015," Vadgaokar said.

The P-81 planes with an operating range of 600 nautical miles are expected to help plug the existing voids in Navy's maritime capabilities. The aircraft will be customised for India and will be based on the Boeing 737 -800 commercial airliner. "The first few pilots will be trained abroad with Boeing. India has expertise in piloting these planes. Many private commercial airlines have these B737-800 aircraft," he added.

Fourteen pilots from Indian Navy and two pilots from Indian Coast Guard have passed out in the 73rd Helicopter Conversion Course on Saturday.

Navy would need around 150 pilots because it was planning to replace its multi-use helicopters by inducting 100 new helicopters for ships, he said, and added that the need for more pilots could be filled in two to three years. "The navy will induct a large fleet of aircraft -- 200 helicopters, 30 medium-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft, 30 multi-role aircraft, 14 unmanned aerial vehicles and 135 fighter aircraft -- in the coming years as part of the maritime capability perspective plan drawn up till 2022."

Vadgaokar said there was no attrition of pilots in the Indian Navy. "Many move out when they reach a seniority after which they may not be able to carry on as operational pilots." Lieutenant A Garud won the best all-round trainee pilot Governor of Kerala rolling trophy while sub lieutenant K Banerjee came first in merit in flying.

Times of India

Indian Navy to build four Landing Platform Docks (LPD)

Aiming at adding more teeth to its amphibious warfare capabilities, the Navy is planning to build four Landing Platform Docks (LPD) to join the fleet, alongside INS Jalashwa, a US warship bought by India in 2007. The Navy is already in the process of getting the design for the LPDs ready in the next year or two and will move the government for sanction to build these warships.

“The plan is to add four more LPDs to the fleet and these would operate alongside INS Jalashwa, the only LPD currently in service,” a senior Navy officer told PTI here on Sunday. “In the coming year or two, we are going to finalise the design for the LPD, which is somewhat akin to INS Jalashwa.

The government sanction for building these ships would be obtained next,” he said. INS Jalashwa - a Sanskrit name for Hippopotamus - is a replenishment and amphibious warfare ship with capacity to embark, transport and land a 1,000-men battalion along with equipment and tanks to support operations on enemy shores.

Being the second largest ship in the Navy inventory after aircraft carrier INS Viraat, Jalashwa is also capable of undertaking maritime surveillance, special operations, search and rescue, medical support as well as humanitarian aid. Jalashwa was originally commissioned in the US Navy as USS Trenton and had served for 36 years when India bought it for USD 48.44 million and commissioned it in its Navy in June 2007.

After a refit programme at Norfolk, US, Jalashwa joined the Indian Navy service late in 2007 and is based under the Eastern Naval Command in Visakhapatnam. Jalashwa became the first ship the US transferred to India. It is also the first LPD in the Indian Navy service.

“The need for such a landing transport amphibious warship was felt in December 2004 when Tsunami waves hit Indian coast including the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Southeast Asia,” the officer said. India had rushed its warships with medical aid and food to the countries hit by Tsunami, but an LPD, which could be converted into a multi-bed hospital, would have made a difference, they said.

“But more than that, LPDs provide the Navy strategic reach to operate far away from Indian shores and support amphibious warfare,” they added. Jalashwa also carries four mechanised landing craft and eight landing assault craft, which could be launched by flooding the ship’s well deck, a speciality of LPDs. These craft could reach enemy shores and dock to deliver infantry and mechanised troops, tanks and equipment.

It also has a flight deck for operating four medium helicopters simultaneously, apart from operating Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) aircraft such as Sea Harriers, which the Navy possesses, in special circumstances.

The Hindu

New Indian Coast Guard OPV in trouble off Tarapore coast

The Coast Guard was working hard to save its brand new Coast Guard Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) from capsizing off the Tarapore coast.The vessel, which is expected to protect Mumbai from 26/11-like terror attacks, was itself in danger before it reached Mumbai's shores.

State-of-the-art Coast Guard ships Samrat and Sankalp and an Indian naval destroyer have been dispatched to keep the ship from sinking. The Mumbai Port Trust's heavy-duty ship M T Enakshi has been charged with the responsibility of towing the ship to safety.

The unnamed OPV got its hull fitted at a shipyard at Baruch in Gujarat, and was heading for Goa Shipyard Limited at Vasco da Gama in south Goa, when it began sinking last evening. Coast Guard Inspector General SPS Basra confirmed to this newspaper that the unnamed OPV was being rescued. "It has to undergo a refit before it can join the fleet," Basra said.

www.mid-day.com

India successfully test fires ship-based ballistic missile Dhanush

Dhanush, the ship-based anti-surface missile was successfully launched from a naval vessel, INS Subhadra in the Bay of Bengal, off the Orissa coast on Sunday. The missile was fired by Indian Navy personnel as part of user training exercise.

The nuclear-capable Dhanush is a naval version of Prithvi and was test-fired at 11.35 hrs. It flew over a range of 350 km and splashed down at the target point in the Bay of Bengal with “pin-point accuracy”, according to Defence Research & Development Organisation sources. The missile followed the pre-designated trajectory with text-book precision and two naval ships located near the target have tracked the splash.

The sources said that the 350-km range missile met all the velocity, height and guidance parameters. Radar systems of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) located along the coast have monitored the entire trajectory of the vehicle which flew for 520 seconds before zeroing on to the target with a CEP (circular error probability) of under 10 metres.

The single stage missile is powered by liquid propellants. It is 10-metre long and weighs six tonnes. It has one metre diameter and can carry 500 kg warhead.

Scientific adviser to Defence Minister V.K.Saraswat, who is also the Director-General DRDO, Major General (retd) P.C. Karbanda, who is Deputy National Security Adviser and Rear Admiral C.S.Patham, who is Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Strategic Forces Command were aboard INS Subhadra to witness the launch.

DRDO sources said that there would be two more flight tests of the nuke-capable Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile Agni-II ( 2,000 km plus range) in the coming months to overcome the failure of the missile in its previous two flights in May and November 2009. The sources added that during its last test in November, Agni-II had a problem at the time of ignition of the second stage. Its flex nozzle too did not function properly. Similar problem with flex nozzle occurred during the first Agni-III ( 3,500 km range) flight in July 2006. The DRDO will test-fire K-15 ( underwater missile) from a submerged pontoon and its land version ‘ Shaurya’ in the coming months.

The Hindu

IL-76 aircraft travelling from North Korea detained in Thailand

Thai authorities have seized tonnes of weapons from an eastern European plane travelling from North Korea.The plane, headed for South Asia, was searched when it landed at Don Mueang airport yesterday. Five foreigners on board the aircraft were detained, the weapons confiscated, and the plane impounded.

The transport plane, thought to be a charter flight en route from the North Korean capital Pyongyang, had stopped for refuelling. Security authorities asked to search the aircraft after being tipped off by their American counterparts. The armed forces, police, immigration and customs officers are investigating the mystery surrounding the arms and ammunition cache, found concealed in 12 crates and weighing about 35 tonnes.

Government spokesman Panithan Wattanayakorn confirmed the seizure and the arrests, saying the weapons included "missiles, explosives and tubes". Lt Gen Thangai Prasajaksattru, commander of the Central Investigation Bureau, said five men from eastern Europe had been detained. "There were a lot of weapons such as rocket-propelled grenades, missiles and other war weapons," he said.

Four of the suspects hold Kazakh passports and the other a Belarus passport. They were identified as Alexandr Zrybnev, 53, Viktor Abdullayev, 58, Vitaliy Shumkov, 54, Ilyas Issakov, 53, from Kazakhstan; and Mikhail Petukhou, 54, from Belarus. Air force spokesman Montol Suchookorn and special branch police said the chartered cargo plane originated in Pyongyang.

"It was a cargo flight that requested to land at the civilian side of the airport," Cpt Montol said.The Russia-made Ilyushin Il-76 transporter aircraft carried five people on board. When customs and immigration authorities examined the aircraft they found suspicious packages in tightly-sealed wood and metal crates.They were told that the shipment comprised "parts" of war weapons. Authorities asked the five people to leave the aircraft and alerted the air force, which is in charge of the airport.

The suspects have told the interrogators little. Authorities have yet to confirm where the aircraft, registered 4L-AWA, originated. At this stage they believe it was registered in Georgia, or Russia. The flight schedule says the plane was headed for Colombo, Sri Lanka. Security authorities suspect the weapons could be destined for Sri Lanka or the Middle East.

One suspect told authorities that the aircraft flew from Russia to North Korea where the weapons were loaded. The foreigners are in the custody of the Crime Suppression Division. They face charges of violating aviation regulations, arms trafficking and making a false declaration. The weapons were transferred to the air force's arms depot in Wing 4 in Nakhon Sawan's Takhli district.

The Defence Ministry, the Foreign Ministry and the Justice Ministry are reviewing international regulations to find out if the aircraft and the cache can be seized permanently. Foreign embassies will be asked to take part in the investigation. Foreign Ministry deputy spokesman Thani Thingpakdi said the government's response is in line with UN Security Council resolutions.

One unconfirmed report says the plane had made regular trips across the region. An air force official involved in the inspection said Thai authorities had been asked by the United States to investigate the plane and its cargo. "We were approached by the United States, seeking our cooperation to examine the suspected plane. It came from North Korea and was heading for somewhere in South Asia," he said. Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said Interpol was also involved. A spokesman for the US embassy in Bangkok, Michael Turner, said he was unaware of the incident.

Bangkok Post

Ukraine to sell armoured vehicles and An-32 transport planes to Iraqi military

Ukraine has signed a deal to deliver $550 million (338 million pounds) worth of arms to Iraq, an official said on Friday, in what local media said was part of the country's largest-ever arms deal.Ukrainian arms firms will sell around 400 armoured vehicles and 10 An-32 transport planes to Iraq's military, said Stepan Havrish, the deputy head of the council of national security and defence council, Interfax news agency reported.

Ukrainian daily Delo reported on Thursday that Kiev had negotiated a $2.4 billion deal with the Iraqi government, to be financed by the United States, which would be the largest arms deal in Ukraine's history.Ukraine was a centre for arms production in the Soviet Union and remains a major exporter of armoured vehicles and anti-missile defence systems.It is one of the United States' closest allies in the former Soviet Union.

Reuters

CIA cancels pact with Blackwater: NYT

NEW YORK – Amid an outcry over its black deeds, the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has cancelled a contract with Blackwater (Xe Worldwide) that allowed the security company to load bombs on CIA drones in Pakistan and Afghanistan, The New York Times reported on Saturday.

Citing intelligence officials, the newspaper said the contract gave Blackwater employees an operational role in one of the CIA’s most significant covert programmes, which has killed dozens of militants with Predator and Reaper drones.

The contract with the company, now called Xe Services, was cancelled this year by CIA Director Leon Panetta, the report said.CIA spokesman George Little said Panetta had ordered that the agency’s employees take over the jobs from Xe employees at the remote drone bases in Pakistan and Afghanistan, the paper noted. Panetta had also ordered a review of all contracts with the company, according to the report “At this time, Blackwater is not involved in any CIA operations other than in a security or support role,” Little was quoted by The Times as saying.

The disclosure about the terminated contract comes a day after The Times reported that Blackwater employees had joined CIA operatives in secret operations against suspected Islamic militants in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Blackwater’s role in the raids grew out of contracts that the company had with the spy agency to provide security for the C.I.A. in Kabul and Baghdad. The company had a dual role in the drone programme, said current and former employees and intelligence officials. Contractors on the secret bases assembled and loaded Hellfire missiles and 500-pound laser-guided bombs onto drones, and they also provided security at the CIA bases.

The C.I.A. did not allow contractors to select targets for the drone attacks or pull the trigger on the strikes, the report said. That work was done at the CIA’s headquarters in Langley, Virginia.

But Blackwater’s direct role in the drone operations sometimes led to disputes between the contractors and CIA employees, as the spy agency sometimes accused Blackwater employees of poor weapon assembly if the missile or bomb missed a target, it said. In one instance last year, a 500-pound bomb dropped off a Predator before the drone had launched its payload, leading to a frenzied search along the Afghan-Pakistani border. A company employee said the bomb was eventually found not far from the intended target.

The Nation

CIA admits Xe (Blackwater) Services presence in Pakistan

DESPITE repeated denials, the CIA has now confirmed that US security contractor Xe Services, formerly known as Blackwater, has been operating in Pakistan. CIA spokesman George Little said that agency Director Leon Panetta has terminated a contract with Xe Services that allowed the company’s employees to load bombs on CIA drones at secret airfields in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Although the spokesman denied that Blackwater was currently involved in CIA operations in Pakistan and Afghanistan, his comments, contradicted past US assertions that the company does not operate in Pakistan, reported Press TV on Saturday.

Other than the US administration, the Pakistani government and Xe itself had denied that the company was operating in Pakistan. Little did say, however, that the contractor still provides so-called security or support assistance to the US intelligence agency in the two countries. He did not elaborate further on exactly what that role involves.

While the New York Times published CIA’s claim that Blackwater employees no longer have an operational role in the agency’s covert programmes in Pakistan and Afghanistan, the British newspaper Guardian posted a quite different article.

Citing comments from an unnamed former US official, the British daily reported that Blackwater was still operating in Pakistan at a secret CIA airfield used for launching drone attacks.

According to the official, who has direct knowledge of the operation, Xe employees patrol areas surrounding the Shamsi airbase in Balochistan. Blackwater gained its notoriety mainly from its activities in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Iraqis have launched several cases against the company in US courts over violent attacks carried out by the company against unarmed people, including an unprovoked 2007 shooting spree in Baghdad that killed 17 civilians. After the Baghdad incident Blackwater changed its name to Xe Services.

The company CEO Erik Prince also is facing allegations by a former US marine and a past employee that he organised the murder of witnesses that could have testified against his company during the hearings. He has also been accused by the two witnesses, whose identities have not been disclosed by the courts for safety purposes, of having anti-Muslim sentiments, ‘encouraging and rewarding the destruction of Iraqi life’, and arms smuggling.

Pakistan’s Interior Minister Rehman Malik had even offered to resignif it is proven that Blackwater is present in Pakistan. However, it remains to be seen whether he will keep that promise now that the CIA has confirmed that Blackwater is and was working in Pakistan.

Pakistan Air Force set to get IL-78 mid-air re-fuellers

Pakistan is acquiring four IL-78 transport planes that will work as mid-air re-fuellers. With this Pakistan would become third country of the region that would be having competence of mid-air fuelling and re-fuelling. Official sources said yesterday it will enhance the capability of the Pakistan Air Force to penetrate deeper in the enemy’s territory. Pakistan will be receiving first plane of the batch towards the end of this month from Ukraine. The Ukrainian government has informed Pakistan about start of supply of the sophisticated planes. The sources said that the transport-cum-air fueller plane belongs to the Soviet technology generation and proved most efficient in the service.

www.gulf-times.com

Pakistan - Air Force Ilyushin IL-78 MIDAS aerial refueling tanker